Animal Planet’s bringing back the very gross series Monsters Inside Me on Wednesday, October 2, 2013 at 9pm, which must mean there’s a demand for a television series about parasites and other ‘monsters’ crawling around inside human bodies. I’ve never watched it (nor do I intend to), but for those of you into this sort of thing, Animal Planet has revealed what you can expect from the upcoming 10 episodes:

A parasitic or viral attack is like a tumultuous roller coaster within the body that can take terrifying – sometimes deadly – twists and turns. Host/biologist Dan Riskin provides scientific perspective throughout this 10-part series that vividly recounts the stories of people tormented by the insidious creatures that invade their bodies.

‘Parasites are everywhere and could infect any one of us,’ explains Riskin. ‘This season, MONSTERS INSIDE ME also spotlights nature’s most debilitating viruses and even shows what could happen when foreign objects are ingested or left behind after surgery.’

Parasites and viruses, which are often microscopic, have mastered the most ingenious survival strategies. Designed to devour nutrients at their hosts’ expenses, parasites cause complete chaos, often resulting in the total annihilation of our immune systems and weakening our ability to fight back. Viruses are also enduring microorganisms, able to mutate quickly and destroy the functioning of important cells. This season, the following real-life cases illustrate just how destructive parasitic and viral attacks can be and just how susceptible we are to the havoc they wreak within us:

* A healthy young yoga practitioner thinks she has a horrible case of the flu; is what’s eating her actually a flesh-eating monster?
* You thought Bubonic plague was a thing of the past? Wrong! It’s the cause of a little girl’s 107-degree fever, which sends her into septic shock and brings her to the brink of death. Does she survive the same ‘Black Death,’ which wiped out civilizations during the Middle Ages?
* Is it just in his head, or does a student actually see a worm slithering around in his eye? Find out if doctors concur with this creepy-crawly self-diagnosis.
* A woman finds her husband hallucinating in the bathtub and immediately rushes him to the hospital. Doctors make a shocking discovery that’s going to have viewers think twice about how they prepare their next meal.

This season, MONSTERS INSIDE ME highlights stories about people who are victim to bot fly larvae, West Nile virus, rabies, rat lungworms and much, much worse. The season also reveals the rare but possible consequences of negligibly washed produce and the dangers of swallowing foreign items.”

Journalist covering the entertainment industry for more than 15 years. Member of the Broadcast Film Critics Association, Alliance of Women Film Journalists, and President of the San Diego Film Critics Society.